🧐 Recommendation.

Twitter makes its recommendation algorithm public, spammers have figured out how to mass-generate fake reviews, and more. April 3, 2023 [Read in browser]( [logo] [sponsor]( Happy Monday. Did you know that any food can be classified as a soup, salad, sandwich… or ravioli? True story. If you think that sounds crazy, reply with a dish and we’ll tell you exactly which group it belongs to, and why. Single ingredients don’t count, just so you know. TWITTER Out now: Recommendation algorithm [article-image] Looks like we’re one step closer to figuring out how Twitter recommends content... The platform’s recommendation algorithm code is now [public on GitHub](, and Elon Musk is hoping users will be able to “find potential issues.” How it works: In addition to revealing the code, Twitter [explained how it chooses Tweets]( to recommend on the For you feed. There are three stages: - Candidate sourcing. Twitter sources tweets from people you follow (in-network) and people you don’t (out-of-network). For out-of-network, Twitter relies on the engagements of users with similar interests, forming “embedding spaces.” - Ranking. The algorithm chooses around 1500 tweets and ranks them by relevancy using a 48M parameter neural network that’s “continuously trained.” - Heuristics, filters, and product features. Finally, Twitter implements product features to create a diverse feed, paying attention to stuff like author diversity, content balance, social proof, and more. Sounds good. Except… There’s more to it, actually: While the documentation offers some insight into how Tweet recommendation works, it seems [Twitter isn’t being entirely transparent](. Strange labels: For one thing, users found that Twitter’s algorithm [labels whether the author is Elon Musk](. Interesting prioritization there. The algorithm also notes whether authors are “power users,” and whether they’re republicans or democrats, or similar. Why? Stat tracking, according to Twitter. Hmm. Why we care: If you want to get your content recommended, it’s worth studying the feed algorithm document. And if you understand code – even better. But while the code is now public, it seems there’s still a lot to be desired—and to be revealed as the code gets dissected. So follow this space… GOOGLE Attack of the review bots Being review-bombed by real people is a headache. But getting reviewed-bombed by AI? There isn’t enough aspirin in the world. Yes, unfortunately spammers found a way to use ChatGPT and other AI tools to [generate fake reviews]( on Google’s Business listings. Close the blinds, please: Users are noticing more and more suspicious reviews appearing on Google Business Profile local listings. Many of them even sound like ChatGPT responses. Take this one, for example: “I’m sorry to hear about your experience with [BRAND]. As an AI language model, I can’t provide any further help…” Google isn’t lying down: The company has already [outlined a strategy for battling AI reviews](. How? By using its own machine learning to “uncover abuse patterns” like the one above and remove them automatically. So, basically fighting AI with AI. Why we care: AI-generated spam could be a real problem for both advertisers and advertising platforms – especially since most platforms lack Google’s computing power. All we can say is, make sure you’re staying on top of your local business listings! SPONSORED BY IMPACT.COM How much should you be paying influencers in 2023? [article-image]( Gone are the days of being able to give away free stuff to pay influencers. Influencers work hard. They have bills too, and need to make a living. Compensating them fairly for the ROI they drive is a great way to build long-term profitable partnerships. [But what’s a fair payment, anyway?](You have to consider the size of their following, content types, social media platforms, and engagement… It’s a lot. Before you hand over your precious marketing spend, consult impact.com's free report to [find out what to pay your influencers, broken down by post, by type and social media channel.]( Negotiating with influencers may seem intimidating or complicated. You’ll set yourself up for success when you optimize spending and creating fair and transparent pricing for all your influencer partnerships. [Get your free payments guide now.]( COPYWRITING Want to write irresistible copy? Use the “desire stacking” technique [article-image] Imagine you’re marketing for a health food company that promises to help customers lose weight. After writing a month of campaigns, you’re feeling bored and running out of ideas. You’ve been repeating the same promises over and over… and it feels like you’re writing in circles. Meanwhile, your audience is losing interest after seeing the same one-dimensional promises again and again. Engagement and click-throughs are down. According Alen Sultanic, if you want to [amplify the power of your copy](, you have to realize two things: #1 — Every human desire is made up of conscious and subconscious desired outcomes. Our desires overlap. They’re layered. We often want one thing for several reasons. And sometimes, our desires are even in competition with each other! #2 — Most people don’t want things for the reasons they think they do. Your customer may say she wants to lose weight, when she really wants to feel loved and accepted. To address both these points, Alen uses a technique called “desire stacking,” where you understand and speak to the additional desires motivating your customer to buy your product. So let’s go back to our health brand example really quick… Here’s how Alen might stack desires in his copy: “You’ll finally be able to fit into that little black dress. But you know what this is all about isn’t how you look… it’s about how good you’ll feel when you walk around. That’s priceless. And once you feel good, imagine all the energy you’ll have.” And you don’t have to stop there, of course. You can stack as many desires in your copy as it makes sense to. To sum up: The next time you feel like you’re repeating benefits, try stacking the desired outcomes of your target audience in your copy. Not only will you overcome copywriter’s block—you’ll also write copy that motivates customers to buy because they feel so understood. Win win! SPONSORED BY HUBSPOT A poem for your marketing plan, you should read… [article-image]( The blueprint can’t be busted… that would be unwise. To make your marketing plan a staple worth revisiting, [use an airtight template that covers strategy and logistic essentials](. Swiftly mapping out your business with this foundational doc, courtesy of HubSpot. Fill-in-the-blank makes it a breeze. [Download it here.]( THE CREW’S INSIGHTS Here’s why your customers are canceling their subscriptions [article-image] When you see customers canceling their subscriptions, it can feel like a breakup. It stings just as bad. And marketers aren't immune to heartbreak! Now, the easy thing to do is to scrap your program altogether. But before you decide your subscription program is a total failure, let’s take a look at why your customers are churning: - They’re no longer feeling the dopamine rush. There are a few distinct points in a customer’s journey: when they place an order, when the order ships, and when it gets delivered. But sometimes these transitions become all too familiar. Try spicing things up by adding a free gift in the third month of their subscription, for example. - They’re receiving the next product before the last one’s empty. Yes, absence makes the heart grow fonder. But there’s a balancing act between taking too long and arriving too fast. Let them schedule when to receive the next shipment. - Their finances have changed. It’s a bill they decided to scrap. Ask them why they’re canceling their subscription, and offer a generous discount if they say it’s too expensive for them. In other words, instead of panicking about churn rates, figure out why customers are leaving. Bonus points if you proactively prevent churn before the customer even realizes they might cancel soon! ROUNDING UP THE STACK [NEW MARKETS:]( Did you know there’s a fast-developing Brazilian market of over 200M people hungry for your products? Yep. And you can make the right connections and expand into this priceless market by securing a booth at [Afiliados Brasil and Gambling Brasil.](* [AI MARKETING:]( Vietato! Italy temporarily banned ChatGPT over the weekend due to privacy concerns and said it will open an investigation into its creator, OpenAI. Apparently “there’s no legal basis” for OpenAI’s collecting and mass storing personal data. Obviously. [CONTENT MARKETING:]( Are you using AI to write your articles? Because big publications definitely are. BuzzFeed has been caught publishing a bunch of AI-generated travel guides. It claims the articles are part of an experiment. If you say so… [SEO:]( Oh wow. Bing integrated image and video search with its AI-powered chat, making the chat even more multimodal. Guess an AI image is worth thousands of AI-generated words after all… [TIKTOK:]( Sure, the US government wants to ban TikTok. What about the citizens? They feel the same, apparently. 50% of US citizens believe the platform should be banned. 22% oppose the ban, while 28% are still undecided. A close call. *This is a sponsored post BRAIN TEASER What can you catch but never throw? You can find [the answer here.]( [poolside-logo] POOLSIDE CHAT Long distance lips [article-image] If you’re in a long-distance relationship, it’s time to have the talk. No, not that one. We mean the one about long-distance kissing. [A Chinese company designed a kissing machine]( to help couples feel… closer. Basically this machine scans your “kisses” with motion sensors and warms up as you “kiss” it. Almost like kissing the person on the other side of the screen… So, what do you think? Not sure we’re at this stage yet. We’re still trying to get used to looking at the thing. SHARING IS CARING Spring weather is weird. Bring a hoodie. When you refer our newsletter to other smart marketers—and they subscribe—we send you the coveted Marketer Zip Hoodie (50 referrals). And you unlock other rewards along the way, like: - The Crew’s Top 10 Insights (2 referrals) - The Ultimate Holiday Marketing Deep Dive (4 referrals) Zip. Mmm, cozy. Share your referral link below to start unlocking exclusive content and merch! [article-image]( [CLICK TO SHARE]( Or copy your referral link: [ [SUBSCRIBE]( | [SM PRO]( | [ADVERTISE]( You are receiving this email because you want to know what is going on in digital marketing. If you aren't thrilled about our emails, reply and let us know why. Or you can unsubscribe from all daily updates by clicking [here.]( Our postal address: Spectrum IT Solutions GmbH, Canettistrasse 1/Top 0107, 1100 Wien, Austria